


D4 Garfield & the Legend of the Phantom Cadet!

by wsdsrdbw4096



Series: Dimension Four [8]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe - 1970s, Anachronistic, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-22
Updated: 2017-12-27
Packaged: 2019-01-21 04:10:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 11,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12449415
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wsdsrdbw4096/pseuds/wsdsrdbw4096
Summary: Sequel to Scooby-Doo! A Haunting at the Ottawa SuperEX! A typical cadet training night turns mysterious when the training officers disappears, disappearances which are attributed to the Phantom Cadet.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note: And now comes my third installment of my Garfield Stephenson Wu series, folks!**

**This story is a direct sequel of _D4 Scooby-Doo! A Haunting at the Ottawa SuperEX!_ , which itself is, within the context of the GSW series, the sequel to  _D4 Garfield and the Secret of the School Library!_**

**In addition, this story takes some inspiration from the classic _Scooby-Doo! Where Are You?_ episode  _What the Hex Going On?_**

**Once again, the Garfield in this story is the title character of this D4 series, not his namesake Garfield the cat from the comic strip bearing his name.**

* * *

Chapter 1: Prologue

_October 22, 1970_

It has been almost two months since Garfield teamed up with Mystery Inc., who were visiting from their hometown of Coolsville, California, and foiled a massive illegal gambling ring at the annual Ottawa SuperEX.

In the weeks since the case, the summer holiday ended with Garfield returning to Glebe Collegiate Institute for Grade 12 that September. It was also that September that his brother David began attending Glebe after graduating from Hopewell Public School that past summer.

With the 1970-1971 school year his final year before graduation, Garfield has began his process of deciding what universities he should apply to.

He already know for a fact that he intends to study in the engineering, architecture, geography and mathematics fields, and his strong interest in railway transportation has him already considered inching closer to study civil engineering at university.

With his intent to study civil engineering in university rather than college, Garfield knew that he has to take plenty of university preparation-level classes, particularly math and science classes.

His additional interests in building design and architecture also led to him taking technological design class, where he learns how to draw building floor layouts and design buildings that functions as a means meet occupant, environmental and economical requirements.

Currently, his school schedule consists of Orchestral Music and Grade 11 Technological Design (A reason why he's taking the class this semester in Grade 12 rather than in Grade 11 was due to his co-op placement at the Ottawa Transportation Commission during the second term this past school year, which left him with a rather full schedule) in the morning, as well as Advanced Functions, Vectors and Introductory Calculus and Chemistry in the afternoon.

Anyways, as with the previous school years, Garfield had made plenty of new friends at school, including several international students from China. He also became acquainted with a girl from Taiwan, even though they don't share any classes outside of orchestral practice.

Meanwhile in cadets, at the beginning of the new training year, Garfield and a handful of level five cadet friends received promotions to Warrant Officer 2nd Class (WO2) after going through interviews with the cadet wing parade commander and officers, and as part of the reshuffling of senior cadet leadership at the squadron, he became the squadron's deputy parade commander, which places him just behind the incumbent parade commander.

Within the entirety of 6th Wing, Garfield was also assigned as the wing's warrant officer, which places him in third place behind the deputy wing parade commander and the wing parade commander, both of whom are WO1s.

With the promotion also comes new leadership responsibilities, and Garfield was assigned to instruct level 3 cadets (Those at the rank of Corporal) for squadron training nights.

His brother David also earned a promotion that September, this one from Corporal to Sergeant, and he was thus moved to the level 4 grouping of cadets.

Like the past training years, Garfield and David continued with their taking part in the squadron's drill team practice.

Anyways, there were a handful of surprises greeting Garfield as the new school year began earlier that September.

First off, his new locker is located right in front of his old Grade 10 History classroom, which places him with the group of students he has known, some indirectly some he had befriended, since Grade 10.

The boy with black shaggy-style hair and appeared of South Asian descent, whose name is Rahman, initially struck Garfield as an eccentric-type for reasons he wasn't entirely sure about, though Garfield felt that it was because he wasn't exactly fully acquainted with him.

They happened to share Grade 11 Gym, a class which his friend James Smith was also in, and it was that class that Garfield became more acquainted with Rahman and saw him as being more physically active, particularly in terms for gymnasium and dancing, as well as friendly.

When Garfield found that his new locker was in front of his Grade 10 History classroom on the first day of the new school year, right by Rahman and his group of friends, he was pleasantly surprised.

"Well, it looks like you've got your new locker closeby, Garfield." Rahman observed on the first day of school when Garfield arrived at his new locker during lunch period that day.

"Yep." Garfield nodded in reply. "First locker at the French classroom corner, then down in the middle hallway at the second floor. I sure tend to move around when it comes to lockers."

"You sure do." Rahman nodded in agreement.

And speaking of pleasant surprises for the new school year, Garfield also noted that he was in Advanced Functions and Introductory Calculus and Vectors class with Rahman for the semester, in addition to noting that he is sharing two classes with Rahman's girlfriend, whose name is Anita.

It was a bit interesting for Garfield to see that he was sharing two classes (Advanced Functions and Chemistry classes) with Anita, considering that he had taken note of her relationship with Rahman on his very first day attending Glebe.

When he recognized Anita, first in Chemistry class, then in Advanced Functions, Garfield briefly thought about his very first day at Glebe when he spotted Rahman and Anita together.

"I suppose Anita must've unlocked a particularly private side of Rahman that suits her needs." He thought.

It was also in chemistry class that he began befriending Anita, particularly after another friend of his, whose name is Janet, switched out of the class.

As he and Anita interacted with each other more frequently in classes, Garfield find her quite the friendly girl, and in spite of her voice sounding like it is in a lower pitch than a typical female, he did find her to be attractive especially with her smile.

"I now understand why Rahman and Anita fell in love with each other." Garfield thought to himself one morning after Anita smiled at him in greeting. "Their relationship is definitely something I'd rather steer clear of."

While Garfield has made efforts to keep himself from standing in the relationship, he has admitted privately in his diary that he felt that he was under her spell at times.

"It's pretty much the same feeling as those felt by Johannes Brahms as he befriended Clara Schumann." Garfield wrote in his diary.

Fortunately, those feelings are alleviated through another pleasant surprise from the first day of the new school year.

That surprise came during the beginning of his Grade 11 Technological Design on the first day, where he was seated at his usual stool at the main table facing the front of the classroom, where Mrs. McPhee, the teacher, was preparing her items for the class.

Mrs. McPhee had expressed surprise to see Garfield in her design tech. class, though she, of course, didn't mind it, especially given that Garfield had previously presented his interest in becoming an architect in her Grade 10 Career studies class.

Anyways, Garfield was seated at his usual stool whistling and glancing at the front door, nodded his greeting at a few friends that has entered the classroom.

As he looked around the classroom as per his usual habit, he almost immediately found himself face-to-face with an attractive girl whom he had never seen before.

The girl had long black hair with a thin frame, and she appeared to be of East Asian descent. Dressed in a white blouse and a pair of jeans, Garfield thought that she looked rather nice and attractive as he turned his head back to the front of the classroom.

A few minutes later, as Mrs. McPhee introduces the course to the class, Garfield felt something hitting him in the back.

He turned to the back just as the girl behind him said, "Sorry about that."

"Ah, it's okay." Garfield smiled, and the girl smiled back at him.

Another few minutes went by before the class was split into groups of two, and Garfield found himself with the girl as they introduced themselves to each other.

"My name is Garfield." Garfield introduced himself.

"Nice meeting you." The girl smiled. "My name is Rebecca."

"Ah, nice name." Garfield said. "Are you from British Hong Kong?"

"Why yes, I am." Rebecca said. "How could you tell?"

"I thought your voice has a slight mix of a British and Cantonese accents." Garfield winked.

"Very impressive." Rebecca nodded. "In that case, I suppose it's safe to assume that you're Taiwanese."

"Ah, you got that right." Garfield nodded before switching to Taiwanese Hakka and continued, "我猜妳是透過我混合的臺灣和日本腔調來猜中的，對不對?" (I suppose you guessed it through my mixed Taiwanese and Japanese accents, right?)

"是的。" (Indeed I did.) Rebecca nodded, speaking in Cantonese, and Garfield felt that he has started to develop an instant liking of her, particularly due to her ability to make sharp observations like the one she just did.

It was also during that introduction that Garfield and Rebecca exchanged small note pages with their names in English and Chinese.

Rebecca noted that Garfield's names are "Garfield Stephenson Wu - 吳廣慶", while Garfield noted that Rebecca's names are "Rebecca Trevithick Lee - 李慧玲".

Nodding, Garfield placed the small note page into his pencil case as Mrs. McPhee called for the class' attention.

As the weeks went by, Garfield and Rebecca became more acquainted with each other as they learned about some personal information to each other.

Garfield learned that Rebecca was also born in Canada, though she and her family returned to Hong Kong when she was three, as well as her being an only child with no siblings.

Rebecca seemed interested when Garfield confided that he, too, was born in Ottawa, returned to Taiwan with his family when he was six and him being the eldest of four siblings with a younger brother and two sisters who are a set of twins.

It was also the look of interest on Rebecca's face and her smile that planted the seed of a particular thought deep inside Garfield.

A thought that Rebecca may have a special status out of all of his female friends, together with maybe Anita though for different reasons.

Of course, Garfield wasn't surprised even when he learned that Rebecca already has a boyfriend.

"針對一個像慧玲的女生，我是不能說我對此感到驚訝的。" (For a girl like Rebecca, I can't say that I'm surprised about this.) He wrote in his diary the day he learned about the news.

He never met Rebecca's boyfriend, though he has thought of what he should say to him should they cross paths.

"No doubt he's gonna be one of the luckiest boys I will ever meet." He thought to himself. "Having a girlfriend like Rebecca, though I'm sure Rahman is just as lucky with Anita."

Anyways, he has largely maintained efforts to avoid thinking about the private, personal lives of his friends and instead focus more on school work, orchestra practice, violin practice, piano practice, university applications and cadet events.

That Thursday, Garfield went through with his usual routines after arriving home from school, finishing his homework and eating his dinner before changing into his cadet uniform and head off to Uplands Airport for the evening, starting first with a ride on the Route 4 Bronson, Catherine & Bank streetcar to Billings Bridge before the transfer onto the Kemptville-bound Canadian Pacific Railway-operated regional train.

Upon disembarking at Uplands Airport, he then took a ten-minute walk to the military installment at the airport and arrived at the school in time for the senior-ranking cadets to have their pre-training night meeting.

The junior cadets begin arriving at the school as the senior cadets have their meeting before the squadron warrant officer orders the cadets to fall in for parade practice.

After opening parade, the cadets went on for their usual training for the night with Garfield instructing the level 3 Corporals.

Little did anyone realize that the training night is about to make a weird turn.

* * *

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	2. An evil laugh, the disappearances, the message and the split up

Chapter 2: An evil laugh, the disappearances, the message and the split up

That evening, the Level 3 cadets were doing drill practices under Garfield's supervision. They were instructed on how to perform rifle drill, with Garfield making clear on his emphasis in treating the practice rifles used in the drill as if they were loaded with ammunition.

"These rifles may be practice rifles used for practices and are not loaded, but it is very important to treat them as if they're real rifles loaded with ammunition." Garfield said in his demonstration with the cadets nodding in understanding. "That said, these practice rifles are not toys and must be treated as if they are real weapons at all times. No exceptions."

As he ordered the cadets to make a left turn, Flight Sergeant Larry Pendrick, who succeeded him as Flight 3's flight commander upon his promotion to WO2, walked towards him.

"Wu, do you have a moment?" Pendrick asked.

"Yes, just a minute." Garfield replied before turning back to the marching cadets and barked, "Squad, halt!"

Once the band of cadets stopped, Garfield turned to Pendrick and asked, "So what's up, Pendrick?"

"Have you or any of the seniors seen Squadron Leader Sanders around?" Pendrick asked.

Garfield frowned briefly in thought for a moment before shaking his head. "I haven't seen him. Why?"

"It's about tonight's senior's meeting during the break." Pendrick said. "Flight Lieutenant Merkley told us this past Tuesday that we were to meet with Squadron Leader Sanders in tonight's senior's meeting to discuss something important, and I thought that he should be around at the school or at least in his office by this point of the night if he were to prepare for the meeting."

"Good point." Garfield nodded thoughtfully. "He's not in his office?"

"The office looked like no one has entered it tonight." Pendrick shook his head.

"Alright." Garfield said. "Go find the other seniors and see if they have seen Squadron Leader Sanders."

"I just did, and no one has seen the CO." Pendrick said. "In addition, I haven't been able to find WO1 St. Laurent anywhere since the opening parade."

"Sheez." Garfield remarked. "Have you checked the other barracks? They might be there."

"I've already fetched someone to check the other barracks." Pendrick said. "Other than the other training classes, they came back reporting that they didn't spot the CO or WO1 St. Laurent in the barracks."

"Now that's funny." Garfield nodded thoughtfully as he spotted Flight Lieutenant David Merkley walking nearby, conferring with WO2 Meyers, the squadron warrant officer.

Before he could say something, though, the lights suddenly went out!

"Say, what happened to the lights?" Someone asked in the darkness.

Just then, there was some evil laughter and Pendrick asked, "What's so funny about this?"

"It's not from any of us, sir." One of the Corporals said.

"Someone get the lights!" Garfield said.

Some minutes went by before the lights returned, but when it did, Garfield and Pendrick's eyes both widened.

"Flight Lieutenant Merkley's gone!" Pendrick exclaimed. "And so is Warrant Officer Meyers!"

"And there's a message sprayed onto the barracks wall." Garfield added. "'NO ONE CAN STOP THE PHANTOM CADET!', it says."

"Phantom Cadet?" Pendrick asked. "I thought that was merely a legend, in which the Phantom Cadet is supposed to be a ghost of a cadet who was said to have disappeared at the Rockcliffe base years ago after he was disqualified from pilot training."

"As did I." Garfield nodded. "Either way, whoever sprayed the message and made Meyers and Flight Lieutenant Merkley disappear is someone we better not mess with."

"And we should probably assume that that someone is also responsible for St. Laurent and the other officers' disappearances." Pendrick interjected.

"Exactly what I'm thinking." Garfield nodded in agreement before turning to the squad of corporals.

In a swift decision, Garfield ordered the squad of 18 to put their rifles onto the ground before having them stand at ease.

"Alright, squad, change in plans." Garfield said after the squad all stood at ease. "What we're going to do now is that you all are going to split up into four groups of three and one group of six."

Eying the three cadets at the rightmost column, he continued, "Corporals Gilroy, Stewart and Anderson, you three go check on the Level 1 class and have everyone regroup here in the main barrack."

Turning to the three cadets at the second column, he continued, "Corporals Abbado, Kraus and LAC O'Mara, you three do the same for the Level 2 class."

Eying the three cadets at the third column, he continued, "Corporals Crabtree, Reilly and LAC Welker, you three do the same for the Level 4 class."

Turning to the six cadets at the fourth and fifth columns, he continued, "Corporals Lau, Chu, both Corporal Khans, LACs Mackay and Larson, you six search the premises and fetch any seniors you can find."

And finally, turning to the remaining three cadets, he added, "Corporals Archer, Jackson and Murdoch, you three stay with Flight Sergeant Pendrick and I and we'll go check on the two duty corporals."

Facing the whole squad again, he then added, "And remember to stick together, everyone. Last thing we all want is more cadets disappearing like the officers and WO1 St. Laurent did earlier."

"Is that understood?" Pendrick asked.

Immediately, the squad all stood at attention and barked, "Yes, sir!"

"Excellant." Garfield nodded in approval. "And also remember to keep your eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary. If you spot something unusual, please don't hesitate to let me or Flight Sergeant Pendrick know."

With the squad all nodding in agreement and understanding, Garfield dismissed the squad before they proceeded to split up.

* * *

A short while later, the rest of the squadron assembled in the main barrack with attendance being taken. Most of the level 1 cadets seemed shaken up by the sudden power outage, the evil laughter and the disappearances.

"So it's not just Flight Lieutenant Merkley and Warrant Officer Meyers that are missing." Garfield said after the three of the teams reported back to him. "St. Laurent, the CO and the training officers that were here are nowhere to be seen."

"That's right, sir." Reilly replied as the other teams nodded. "None of the team has seen Flight Sergeant Connolly and Flight Sergeant McLean either."

"Then, we're going to have to assume that whoever this Phantom Cadet was also managed to nab them." Pendrick interjected. "Of all the training nights for Flying Officer Lenny to be off."

"He told me that he's taking part in a police raid tonight, so he won't be here at the barracks." Garfield said.

Looking around, he then motioned the remaining seniors to gather around him with the sergeants keeping order among the junior cadets.

"So what should we do about this, Wu?" The drum major, Flight Sergeant Jean-Philippe Gauthier, asked.

"Judging from the volunteer work I've did at the Ottawa Police, in addition to my alerting Flying Officer Lenny on an illegal gambling ring at the Ottawa SuperEX this past summer, I say we should investigate." Garfield replied.

Before the other flight sergeants can reply, there was a knock on the main entrance door to the barrack.

"Better see who that is at the door." Garfield said. "Pendrick and Neeson, you guys come with me and answer the door. The rest of you, stay put and keep an eye on the cadets."

"Right." Gauthier nodded.

Staying together in a group, the trio of senior cadets made their way to the main entrance door and opened the door.

On the other side stood Under Officer 2nd Class Rachel Leclerc, who's the parade deputy commander of the local Canadian Girls Venture Corps Air Cadets squadron attached to 6th Wing Royal Canadian Air Cadets, along with Flight Sergeant Jessica Curry.

In the dim light provided by the nearby lamp, the trio can also see three bands of female air cadets standing behind them.

"Hello, Wu." Leclerc said in greeting.

"Let me guess: The Phantom Cadet nabbed your senior cadets and officers?" Garfield raised an eyebrow.

"That's right." Leclerc nodded. "Our suspicions were initially laid on your cadets pulling a prank on us."

"A rather elaborate one if you ask me." Neeson interjected. "It just so happened that we're having the same issue."

"Looks like we're on the same boat." Curry nodded.

"Anyways, mind if we bring our squadron into the barrack while this mess is cleared up?" Leclerc asked.

"Normally, I'll have to ask the officers on that." Garfield replied. "However, since all of our officers have went missing and I'm the sole Warrant Officer who hasn't been nabbed, I'm gonna make the judgement call to allow you girls in until this mess is sorted out."

"Besides, the main barrack has enough room for 200 people." Pendrick added.

"Perfect." Leclerc nodded before motioning the cadets into the barrack.

After the female cadets have settled in the barrack and a headcount is done, the senior cadets from the two squadrons huddled together for a meeting while the sergeants kept watch on the junior cadets.

"So as WO2 Wu was saying, we should investigate this ourselves." Neeson said.

"Shouldn't we contact the police?" Flight Sergeant Julia Atkinson asked.

"We've already sent two cadets to make the phonecall." Garfield replied. "However, they reported that the phone line has been cut."

"Same with our telephone." Leclerc added. "Of all the training nights for Flying Officer Lenny to take part in a police raid."

"I know, eh?" Flight Sergeant Mark Slorach nodded in agreement. "As WO2 Wu said, we should investigate this and see if we clear this up."

"But we're gonna have to stay together." Flight Sergeant Donna Bruun interjected. "Whoever is behind all of this managed to kidnap not just your WO1 and both of our officers, but also UO1 Lucille Dickens and UO2 Anita Dickinson, and we don't need any of us to be next."

"Right." Garfield nodded. "Now, our duty corporals reported that no one entered the barrack after the squadron split up for training, nor did they spot any vehicle entering, leaving or driving by through the window on the entrance doors."

"So are we looking at someone from our squadron who is actually responsible for this?" Slorach asked.

"Possibly." Garfield nodded. "Though how did that someone managed to snatch Flight Lieutenant Merkley and WO1 St. Laurent in the same time?"

"We may be looking at someone very strong." Atkinson said.

"As well as someone familiar with the air base." Neeson added.

"In that case, we ought to search around the area." Garfield said. "Whoever's responsible for this hasn't gone far, and he or she might still be in the area."

"Which also means we have to keep the cadets together and have the seniors keep an eye on them." Leclerc added. "May I suggest that we first search our barracks?"

"Works with me." Garfield shrugged. "Perhaps we can find a clue there."

"So with Wu and Leclerc going, who else wants to go?" Atkinson asked.

"I'll go." Pendrick quickly said.

"Same here." Slorach added.

"Count me in." The girls' drum major, Flight Sergeant Rene Ogden, added.

"And same here." Bruun said.

"And the rest of us will keep watch on the cadets." Gauthier added.

"Good thinking." Garfield nodded. "If any of the cadets spot anything unusual, do let us know when we return."

"No problem." Neeson said. "And we'll gather up the sergeants to help us keep watch on the cadets."

Everyone nodded before they proceeded to split up.

* * *

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	3. Split up, the search and regrouped

Chapter 3: Split up, the search and regrouped

Soon, the six senior cadets were searching through the barracks.

"With all these barracks to search through, I think we're going to have to split up, guys." Odgen suggested.

"Good idea." Garfield nodded. "We'll split into two groups with the boys and girls in each group."

"Okay with me." Leclerc said before nodding at the Ogden and Bruun, motioning them to join her.

"Remember that we have to all stay together." Slorach said. "Last thing we need is to mobilize the whole squadron to search for another missing senior."

"Indeed." Bruun nodded as they proceeded to split up.

"We'll search the eastern barracks, while you guys search the western barracks." Leclerc said.

"Sounds good." Garfield said before nodding at Pendrick and Slorach and added, "Let's go."

"Right." Pendrick nodded as he and Slorach proceeded to follow Garfield.

* * *

"Man, until tonight's training, I've never put much stock on this old legend of the Phantom Cadet." Pendrick said as they looked around the first barrack.

It was dark inside, saving for the lights from their flashlights, as the light switch wasn't working.

"Not just you, Larry." Garfield nodded in agreement. "I remember back in Toronto, during my very first bush weekend, I was spooked when the officers told us the legend around the campfire at night."

"Oh yeah, Garfield." Slorach said. "You were transferred from the Toronto Downsview Wing, weren't you?"

"Yes indeed." Garfield nodded. "My old squadron was based in RCAF Station Downsview and for bush weekends, we mainly go to the Don Valley where it's pretty much nothing other than the Don River, the woods and fields."

"I see." Both Pendrick and Slorach nodded as they looked around with their flashlights on. "Man, this sure felt like we're at bush weekend indeed."

"No argument from me." Garfield agreed. "The sooner we find the officers, the better."

"In addition to finding the culprit and catch him before he causes any more trouble around here." Slorach added.

"Right." The trio all nodded as they carried on with the search around the barrack. However, neither of them were aware that a shadowed figure was watching their moves.

Watching the trio searching through the desks and the equipment in the barrack, the figure in question made its move.

After Garfield finished searching through the desks and equipment, he moved to the file cabinets and opened the drawers one by one.

His eyes narrowed when he spotted something in the top drawer.

"Hey guys, take a look at this." He called out.

At the remark, Pendrick and Slorach dropped what they were doing and rushed over to Garfield.

"What is it, Garfield?" Pendrick asked.

Garfield reached into the drawer, took out three train tickets and showed them to Pendrick and Slorach.

"Three Penn Central train tickets for a one-way trip from Union Station to the Grand Central Terminal in New York." Garfield said. "And they're all dated tomorrow."

**(Note: The Penn Central Transportation Company is the successor company to the New York Central Railroad that operates the Ottawa and New York Railway line, which was closed down in 1957 in real-life.**

**In this dimension's settings, all major rail lines in the Ottawa-Hull area remain active, that including the downtown Ottawa Union Station and the New York and Ottawa Railway.**

**With this story's setting of 1970, it still follows real-world events where the New York Central Railway was merged with several other rail companies to form the Penn Central Transportation Company in 1968. Therefore, train operations and ownership of the Ottawa and New York Railway, in this dimension, is under the hands of Penn Central.)**

"Seems like someone is eager to split out of here tomorrow." Slorach remarked.

"And I've very sure the squadron isn't having any activities involving any of the cadets travelling to New York." Pendrick added. "Nor are any of the officers going away to New York without returning, as far as we know."

"The question now is: Why?" Garfield asked.

"And more importantly, who are these three train tickets for?" Pendrick said.

Before any of the trio could answer, they suddenly heard some sudden movements from behind them.

"Say, you guys heard that?" Garfield asked with a whisper as they paused with him putting the train tickets back into the drawer.

"Yes." Slorach nodded as they all shined their flashlights to the back. "It came from the back."

The trio looked around with their lights at the back, and it was then that Pendrick shined his lights towards the left that he caught a glimpse of a shadowed figure running along the side of the barrack.

"Over there, guys!" He whispered urgently, and Garfield and Slorach quickly followed his lead in shining their flashlights to the left.

There was some silence for a brief moment, and then someone suddenly grabbed Slorach from behind and attempted to cover his mouth.

Seeing the figure trying to grab Slorach, Garfield and Pendrick quickly came to his aid.

"Oh now you don't!" Garfield said as he used some karate moves to pry the figure's hands off Slorach!

A scuffle soon followed, and before long, the figure was gone and the trio quickly caught their breaths.

"That was a close one!" Slorach remarked as he brushed himself before straightening his uniform and added, "Am I glad I didn't join the officers in disappearing!"

"Yeah." Garfield nodded in agreement before he shined his flashlight at the open drawer, peeked in and added, "However, whoever that was took the three Penn Central train tickets while we were in the scuffle."

"But how could whoever tried to grab Larry also managed to take the train tickets?" Pendrick asked. "Larry was the furthermost away from the cabinet."

"I do recall hearing the door opening and closing during the scuffle." Slorach said.

"Which could mean that whoever tried to grab you had an accomplice, Larry." Pendrick said to Slorach. "Which also means that those three tickets were for whoever tried to grab you and managed to grab the officers as well."

"And that may explain how the Phantom Cadet was able to snatch Flight Lieutenant Merkley and Meyers effortlessly." Slorach added.

"Say, Larry, you said that you heard the door opening and closing during the scuffle, did you?" Garfield asked.

"Yes I did, Garfield." Slorach nodded. "Why?"

"Are you guys willing to bet that the door's locked right now?" Garfield asked again.

The trio stared at each other for a brief moment before they quickly rushed over to the front door and tried to open it. Sure enough, the door was locked.

"Oh, great!" Pendrick said as they tried to open the door multiple times, only for the door to remain jammed shut. "We're locked in!"

"Quick!" Slorach urged. "Try the back door!"

Immediately, Garfield rushed over to the back door, only to find it locked as well, no matter how hard he tried to open it.

"The back door's locked as well!" Garfield shouted.

"Must be whoever's been using that Phantom Cadet legend to cause trouble around here, guys." Pendrick said. "Likely the trio of whom the train tickets are for."

"So what now?" Slorach asked.

"We figure a way to get out of the barrack." Garfield said. "Hopefully, the females are having better luck than us."

* * *

Meanwhile, the females have finished searching through the other two barracks and haven't found anything out of the ordinary, so they decided to return to the main barrack, where the administration offices are at.

"This better not be one of the pranks pulled by one of the male cadets from the squadron." Leclerc remarked as they searched around the dark hallway leading to the administrative offices.

"Indeed, Rachel." Ogden nodded. "If that is the case, then they certainly have a lot to answer to when we catch them."

The trio soon arrived at the door to the main administration office, only to hear a growl.

"Listen." Leclerc said as she hushed the girls. "You girls hear something?"

Bruun silently pointed her flashlight downwards towards the floor, where it shined on a dog growling at them.

"It's a bulldog." She said.

"I don't believe dogs are allowed on base." Ogden said as the bulldog growled at them. "Unless he's the squadron's mascot."

"Which I don't believe it is." Leclerc said. "I'm certain the squadron mascot will be a lot friendlier than him."

"Well, let's not stick around and find out." Bruun suggested. "I certainly don't want to end up on the wrong end of that bulldog's teeth."

At the remark, the trio quickly took off down the hallway while the bulldog gave chase.

A short while later, they were in the supply room and have lost the bulldog.

As the bulldog looked around searching for the trio, a hand came out from the doorway and pointed towards the direction the girls headed in.

The bulldog nodded before proceeding to head in that direction, whereupon the girls spotted it approaching.

"Uh oh." Leclerc remarked. "Here we go again, girls."

The trio then got out from their hiding spot and raced out of the supply room, where they found the emergency exit door that has the warning sign that indicates that the alarm will be sounded if the door is opened.

With the bulldog in close pursuit, the girls instinctively pushed the emergency exit door open, only to found that to their surprise, the alarm didn't go off as the warning sign indicates.

"That's strange." Bruun remarked. "The alarm is supposed to go off."

"Someone must've somehow tampered with the system." Leclerc said. "Come on!"

A short second later, the bulldog rushed through the emergency exit door, only to find the girls were nowhere in sight.

It was then that it heard the door slam, with the females actually hiding behind the opened door as the bulldog raced out and then they quickly hurried back into the barrack before the bulldog sensed that it has been fooled.

Watching the bulldog looking around, the girls sighed.

"That was a close call." Ogden remarked.

"Indeed it was." Leclerc nodded in agreement. "Now to find the boys and see if they've found something."

* * *

A short while later, the six seniors regrouped in the main barrack not long after Garfield, Pendrick and Slorach managed to get themselves out by unscrewing the door hinges with a screwdriver Slorach managed to find in the file cabinet.

"Sounds to me that you girls found a clue, actually." Garfield said to Leclerc.

"Huh?" The girls looked at each other before Leclerc asked, "What do you mean by that, Wu?"

"Why would a phantom or a ghost need a guard dog?" Garfield asked.

The six all shared a look with each other at the remark before realization set in.

"Then, this confirms our suspicions that the Phantom Cadet is nothing more than someone bent on causing trouble around here." Leclerc said.

"Exactly." Slorach nodded. "Only question is: Who?"

"Did you guys find anything?" Ogden asked.

"We found three Penn Central train tickets in a file cabinet drawer." Pendrick said. "All one-way train tickets from Union Station to New York's Grand Central Terminal, with the train departing tomorrow."

"Sounds like someone is desperate to not only get out of town but also get out of the country." Bruun remarked.

"However, we were ambushed by two men in the dark after we made the discovery." Garfield said. "One of them tried to grab Larry and in the scuffle, someone got in and took the train tickets."

"And after that, we were locked inside the barrack." Slorach added. "We only managed to get out by unscrewing the hinges on the doors with a screwdriver I found in the file cabinet."

"Must be whoever behind the Phantom Cadet that did those to you guys." Ogden surmised.

"Indeed." Pendrick said as they all nodded. It was then that something occurred to him. "Say, you girls were at the administrative offices when that bulldog chased you girls out, eh?"

"Yes." Leclerc said.

"I wonder why did the Phantom Cadet have that guard dog posted at the administrative offices?" Garfield said. "My hunch is that there's something at the administrative offices that the Phantom Cadet doesn't want us to find."

"In that case, let's hurry back there before the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices return." Leclerc urged.

"Right." Pendrick nodded. "Let's go."

With that, the six senior cadets hurried their way to the administrative offices.

* * *

**Please read and review!**


	4. The rescue and the capture

Chapter 4: The rescue and the capture

A short while later, the six seniors are at the front door to the main administrative office.

Bracing themselves for any possible encounter with the Phantom Cadet, the other five looked around as Leclerc picked the locked door.

"Got it!" Leclerc declared as the lock clicked and they were soon able to open the door effortlessly and enter the room.

As they entered the room, Slorach and Bruun swiftly picked up a folded chair placed by the door and held it over their heads.

"In case the Phantom Cadet and his pals decides to enter the room." Slorach explained when the others gave him and Bruun weird looks.

"Fair enough." Garfield nodded before they carried on further into the office room as they looked around in the dark. "It's good to be-"

"Sh-sh-shhh!" Leclerc suddenly said, her arm reaching out to stop them from making any more noise before she whispered. "Listen! Did you guys hear something?"

The group paused as they listened carefully, where they all heard some moaning.

"It's coming from the back of the office!" Garfield whispered urgently. "Behind the desk!"

"Let's go check!" Pendrick nodded forward.

As quick as foxes, the four made their way towards the desk, where they then shined their flashlights onto the dark area.

Seated right behind the desk, tied up and gagged, were Flight Lieutenant Merkley, Flight Lieutenant Nicole Elfman and a few other training officers from the two squadrons.

"Flight Lieutenant Merkley!" Garfield and Pendrick exclaimed in the same time.

As quick as foxes, the four moved to ungag and untie the officers.

"Oh, are we all glad to see you four!" Merkley said as soon as Garfield removed the gag covering his mouth. "The space in here sure was tight!"

"Indeed, sir." Garfield nodded while Slorach, at the door, moved to turn on the office lights. "We've kept the lights off so we won't attract the attention of whoever is causing trouble around here, though the light switch at the Level 3 training barracks isn't working."

"No doubt that so-called 'Phantom Cadet' of the Rockcliffe base is behind all this trouble." Flying Officer Anita Carter, the training officer for the Level 4 cadets at the Girl Venture Corps Air Cadet squadron, said.

"Indeed." Leclerc nodded before gesturing towards Garfield and added, "Wu here has been leading us to find you and the other missing officers and seniors, in addition to finding the person, or in this case, people responsible for this."

"Oh, speaking of which, where are the COs and the missing seniors?" Pendrick asked.

"Check the other offices." Flight Lieutenant Nash suggested as he got up. "As well, I heard them talking about the supply room. Perhaps two of you can go check out over there?"

The six seniors all nodded before they regrouped. During this time, Garfield happened to take a look at the desk.

"Alright, I suppose we're going to split up again, eh?" Bruun asked Garfield.

Garfield briefly didn't respond when something on the desk caught his attention.

"Wu?" Bruun asked again.

Garfield then looked up, where he then turned to face everyone in the room.

"Everyone, I believe I've figured out what exactly the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices are after." Garfield said.

"Eh?" Leclerc asked. "You did, Wu?"

Garfield nodded as he held up the newspaper page he was reading. "This is what the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices are after."

Everyone leaned in to look at the newspaper page Garfield was holding. It was an article on the anniversary of a cargo plane crash at RCAF Station Uplands, a crash that occurred in 1944.

As it turned out, the cargo plane in question was carrying valuable cargo, which included priceless treasure brought to Canada for safekeeping from the Nazis during the war, with the cargo transferred from RCAF Station Rockcliffe to the more-secure storage facility at Uplands.

The crash occurred on a foggy day, though as things turned out, the wreckage was never found, nor were the remains of the crew members on the plane.

In spite of that, there has been rumours that the wreckage ended up buried deep underground. In fact, the barracks was built above where the wreckage was said to be buried.

"I don't get it." Bruun said. "What does this have to do with the Phantom Cadet?"

"The crash occurred on the day a flight cadet disappeared from Rockcliffe after he was disqualified from pilot training." Garfield said. "And the cargo plane was transferring valuable cargo from Rockcliffe to Uplands."

Everyone in the room looked at each other.

"That can't be a coincidence, can it?" Ogden asked.

"I don't believe so." Garfield said, and the others all nodded in agreement.

He then added, "I'll explain the rest as soon as we find the missing seniors and the two COs, in addition to capturing the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices."

"So what exactly are we gonna do right now?" Slorach asked. "Are we splitting up again?"

"Yes." Garfield nodded. "So we're going to split into groups of three once again, where the females search the COs office while us three search the supply room."

"Sounds good." Leclerc said.

"Meanwhile, we've got the cadets gathered all together on the parade square." Bruun said to Flight Lieutenant Elfman.

"Excellent." Elfman nodded. "Then, we're heading down to let the cadets know that we're okay."

* * *

Soon, the girls were at the door leading to the COs office in the hallway.

"I won't be surprised if the door is locked." Leclerc said as she tried to open the door while Bruun and Ogden looked on and around. Sure enough, the door was locked, and she had to pick the lock.

Once the trio were inside the office, they looked around with their flashlights on.

It didn't take long for them to find Squadron Leader Sanders and Squadron Leader Helen Warren, who were both seated on the floor, tied up and gagged.

"Oh, are we glad to see you!" Sanders said as soon as the trio removed the gag on his mouth.

"Indeed we are, sir." Ogden nodded as she and Bruun worked to untie their bonds. "That Phantom Cadet sure is a lot of trouble around here."

"I'll say." Warren agreed as they got up from the floor. "And all of this have to occur on the night when the commanding officer of the Air Defence Command, Air Vice-Marshal Henry Jennings, is to visit 6th Wing and review the parade."

"Anyways, I believe the air vice-marshal will be delighted when we clear up this mess of the Phantom Cadet, ma'am." Bruun said.

"Oh yes, about that." Warren said. "How did you three know to search the offices?"

"Oh, it's quite a long story, ma'am." Leclerc said. "However, the person you should thank in leading us in clearing this mess is WO2 Wu."

"Ah, is he?" Sanders said with a bright expression on his face. "We certainly can count on him solving problems and clearing up a mess like this."

"Yes, you certainly can, sir." Bruun nodded. "In fact, all we've got left to do is find the missing seniors, which WO2 Wu, Flight Sergeant Pendrick and Flight Sergeant Slorach are taking care of, in addition to capturing the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices."

"You mean there are more than one person behind all of this mess?" Sanders asked.

"Yes, sir." Leclerc nodded. "Three people are involved in this, to be exact."

"Then, I suppose we've gotta inform the Air Force Police about this." Warren interjected.

"Unfortunately, ma'am, we're going to have to find a way to do that." Leclerc said. "The phone lines have been cut."

Warren and Sanders shared a look with each other at the remark.

"Whoever's behind this Phantom Cadet appearance is sure bent on causing trouble and confusion." Sanders said.

"Indeed." Warren nodded in agreement.

* * *

Meanwhile, at the supply room, Garfield, Pendrick and Slorach carefully trend their way through the lines of hung clothes.

Spare dress tunics, dress shirts, sweaters, trousers, parkas and jackets are all hung there with size tags.

There are also dozens of boxes containing unused drill boots, packs of wool socks, wedge caps and peaked caps and new dress ties and rank slip-ons.

It didn't take long for the trio to hear the muffling coming from the far end of the room, during which they realized that the noise is coming from under the clothes racks.

Pushing the spare uniforms aside, the trio found WO1 St. Laurent and a few other missing seniors tied up and gagged.

And they all soon found all of the other missing seniors under the other rows of hung spare uniforms.

"Boy, am I glad to see you guys." St. Laurent said as Garfield removed the gag and proceeded to untie the ropes.

"Indeed we are, Georges." Garfield nodded as Slorach and Pendrick moved to do the same thing to the other seniors they found. "That Phantom Cadet that did this to you...did he hurt you?"

"The only part that hurts is my wrist." St. Laurent said as he rubbed his wrists before getting up. "From the rope."

"That, we can see." Pendrick said as UO1 Lucille Dickens got up as well. "The rope looked awfully tight."

"Anyways, we're close to getting to the bottom of this." Garfield said as they freed the remaining seniors. "All we've got left to do is to capture the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices."

"'Accomplices'?" Dickens asked.

"We believe that there are more than one person involved in this racket." Pendrick explained. "All the cadets are gathered on the parade square and are accounted for, and we've found the missing officers that were grabbed by the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices."

"Ah, alright then." St. Laurent said before turning to Garfield as he added, "What's the plan, Wu?"

"Come with us." Garfield said as he nodded at the door. "I'll explain everything on how are we gonna turn the tables against this Phantom Cadet and his accomplices."

* * *

A short while later, the seniors and officers gathered around Garfield as he outlined the conclusion he has drawn onto.

"So the missing cargo is the key to everything, eh?" Sanders asked once Garfield asked.

"Yes, sir." Garfield nodded. "And it's going to be the key component for our trap to capture the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices."

He then motioned everyone closer and proceeded to outline his plan for the trap. Once he finished explaining, everyone nodded.

"Let's get this done!" Pendrick nodded.

* * *

Soon, Garfield and Pendrick were walking together in the dark with a box.

"Alright, Phantom Cadet." Garfield called out. "You've got us! We're outnumbered! And we've got the treasure you've been looking for!"

"If you want it, come and get it!" Pendrick added.

The duo continued on walking through the training base, though nothing happened.

Just as the duo started thinking that they were mistaken, a hand grabbed onto Garfield by the shoulder, leading them to stop in their tracks.

The duo turned to the back and found themselves face-to-face with the Phantom Cadet and his two phantom support crew members.

"Good to see you finally see things my way." The Phantom Cadet hollered with a smirk. "We never thought you would ask."

"And here's the treasure you've been looking for." Pendrick said as Garfield handed the package to the phantom, who took it eagerly.

"Ah, excellent." The Phantom rubbed his hands before proceeding to open the package.

Nothing could prepare the Phantom and his accomplices on what will happen next. The only thing that happened after the Phantom opened the package was that a water-squirting jack-in-a-box suddenly popped out of the open package and squirted water right onto the trio's faces.

"Gah!" The Phantom exclaimed as water was squirted onto his face.

At that, Garfield and Pendrick quickly dropped the package and took off running.

"Get back here, you imbeciles!" The Phantom Cadet growled as he tried to get water off his face.

He then turned to his two crew members and added, "Get them!"

"Yes, sir!" The two phantom crew members saluted before the trio took off after the duo.

"I'll have you court-martialled if you don't stop!" The Phantom shouted as Garfield and Pendrick ran on.

It didn't take long before the duo reached the rear entrance to the cadet training base, where Leclerc and the others were waiting.

"They took the bait." Garfield said.

"Good." Leclerc nodded before turning to the two cadets stationed behind two nearby trees and bushes and added, "Get ready!"

"Right!" The two cadets nodded before picking up the rope and hid behind the trees with the rope tensioned.

The three phantoms soon saw Garfield and Pendrick waving their hands and taunting them.

"Come and get us, you bozos!" Pendrick shouted.

"With pleasure!" The Phantom retorted as the phantom trio raced towards the two trees.

However, as soon as they passed through the two trees, they tripped over something.

"Ah!" They shouted as they tripped over and started rolling down the hill.

At the bottom of the hill, a M35 military cargo truck with a ramp ready and configured with cell doors at the rear was on standby with Bruun and Slorach waiting with a few other cadets looking on.

The phantom trio ended up rolling down the hill, and then up the ramp into the cargo truck.

As soon as they ended up in the cargo hold of the truck, Slorach and Bruun quickly shut the cell doors, which then clicked.

With the cell doors only able to be opened from the outside and the canvass held down tight, the phantom trio were trapped.

Seeing that they have captured the Phantom Cadet and his accomplices, the cadets witnessing the capture all cheered.

* * *

**One more chapter to go, folks! Please read and review!**

**Also, I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!**


	5. The wrap-up

Chapter 5: The wrap-up

A short while later, the whole wing, together with the Girls Venture Corps squadron, was on the parade square while a handful of military police officers from the RCAF Police were at the scene with the phantom trio handcuffed.

After the inspections and the march past, the wing got down to the big announcement as Air Vice-Marshal Jennings took note of the captured phantom trio.

"So I've been informed that a handful of seniors from the Uplands Squadrons were instrumental in the capture of this Phantom Cadet and his two accomplices this evening." Jennings said as he looked at the handcuffed phantom trio.

"Yes indeed, sir." Wing Commander Lester Turner, the commanding officer of the RCAC 6th Wing, nodded. "The capture was coordinated by WO2 Garfield Wu, Flight Sergeant Larry Pendrick and Flight Mark Slorach of the Uplands Squadron and UO2 Rachel Leclerc, Flight Sergeant Rene Ogden and Flight Sergeant Donna Bruun of the Girls Ventures Corps affiliate squadron at Uplands."

Turner then nodded at Sanders and Warren, who nodded back at him.

"I call upon WO2 Wu, UO2 Leclerc, Flight Sergeants Pendrick, Slorach, Ogden and Bruun to the front for the unmasking and wrapping up of this mystery." Turner then said.

At the command, the six all stood at attention and simultaneously yelled "Sir!" before marching their way to the front of the parade square.

After the six gathered around the air vice-marshal, he gestured the SPs to bring the handcuffed phantom trio closer.

"I understand that these three were responsible for causing trouble for your training night. Not only did they kidnap the officers, but also several of the squadrons senior non-commissioned members, correct?" Jennings asked.

"Yes, sir." Garfield nodded. "We eventually got to the bottom of this and rescued the officers and the missing seniors, in addition to capturing the trio."

"That, we all can see." Jennings nodded. "Now, I was told that these three were using the old legend of the Phantom Cadet to cause trouble, and being someone who had taken part in pilot training at Rockcliffe during the war, I may have an idea on who this 'Phantom Cadet' could be."

"Was he someone you knew personally, sir?" Leclerc asked. "Or...actually, let's put it this way: During your time at Rockcliffe for your pilot training during the war, sir, was there anyone in your flight who can be considered to be a trouble-maker?"

"Not that I particularly recall." Jennings frowned after some thought. "However, I do remember the day when the news broke that someone from a rival flight vanished from the base. It was also the day that a cargo plane transferring goods from Rockcliffe to Uplands crashed upon landing."

"From what we've heard about the legend, that someone vanished after getting disqualified from pilot training, sir." Pendrick interjected.

"Yes indeed." Jennings nodded. "Now, I do know that there were three guys who were disqualified from pilot training that particular day, which came a couple days after those three were involved in some, well, inappropriate business."

"Such as starting a bar fight while off-duty, sir?" Bruun asked.

"Something like that." Jennings said. "Now, those three were ordered to be dismissed from their training following the RCAF Police investigation into their conduct, and they were to return home. However, one of them vanished shortly before that cargo transfer flight to Uplands was due for departure from the base."

"Do you believe that someone who vanished decided to stowaway on that flight, sir?" Garfield asked.

"I believe he did." Jennings nodded. "Heck, he didn't bother leaving with his belongings, and the whole base was on lock down as the Service Police searched for the missing cadet. It was only after we received news on the crash at Uplands that the search was called off, especially after a ground crew technician reported that he caught a glimpse of the missing cadet boarding the ill-fated flight. Protocols were later reviewed to prevent a similar incident of someone stowaway on a flight in the future."

"Anyways, I'm sure you're interested in finding out who these three phantoms are really are, sir." Garfield said.

"Of course." Jennings said. "I'm sure everyone here will appreciate it that you guys don't leave them in a cliffhanger."

"Right then." Leclerc said as she and Garfield walked over to the Phantom Cadet.

"This Phantom Cadet is none other than..." Garfield began as he and Leclerc prepared to pull the mask off.

The duo then pulled the mask off, only for the cadets from the Rockcliffe squadron to gasp when they recognized the face.

"Flight Lieutenant Derek Crane?!" They exclaimed.

Garfield and Leclerc shared a look with each other, then with the air vice-marshal, then with the officers.

It was then that the real Flight Lieutenant Derek Crane, who's the chief pilot instructor with the Rockcliffe squadron and was standing with the officers, walked over.

"But that's not possible!" Sanders said when he saw Crane walking over to them. "How can Flight Lieutenant Crane be standing at two places in the same time?"

"Hold it, everyone!" Bruun said when she noticed something. "There's another face beneath this face!"

"Two masks, eh?" Jennings asked. "In that case, who is it?"

Garfield and Leclerc nodded before pulling the second mask off, and the face that is revealed resulted in a few gasps - all from the officers and Jenning himself.

"I don't believe it!" Jennings exclaimed.

"But somehow, we can." Crane said as Merkley and Flight Lieutenant Jordan Bennett, training officer of the Level 4 cadets from the Connaught squadron, walked over.

"Indeed." Bennett nodded. "This man is former Rockcliffe squadron sponsoring committee chair from the Optimist Club, Ronald Paul. He was forced out of the committee and arrested after we found him to have embezzled funds we've raised for the Royal Canadian Legion and for the wing."

"At that time, I was volunteering at the squadron as a regular forces volunteer." Jennings said. "And I was the one who specifically asked these three to investigate the fundraising problem."

FLASHBACK - Fifteen Years Ago

_November 8, 1955_

That early evening, Flight Sergeant Jordan Bennett was ready to meet up with the seniors prior to the beginning of the training night when he ran into Flight Lieutenant Henry Jennings, who beckoned him to speak to him in private.

"What is it, sir?" Bennett asked in greeting.

"How good are you with financial numbers and transactions, Flight Sergeant Bennett?" Jennings asked.

"Ah, I'm taking an accounting course in school, sir." Bennett said. "Why?"

Jennings took out two files and handed them to Bennett.

"The numbers on the first file detail the amount we've fundraised for the Royal Canadian Legion through poppy distributions this past weekend." Jennings said. "However, they don't match up with the fundraising number indicated in the receipt we received from the Legion."

Bennett took a close look at the two files, taking note of the dates and the numbers, before he nodded.

"You're right, sir." He said. "The numbers don't add up."

"Yes, and I need you to get to the bottom of this and find out what happened to the 76,000 that was raised." Jennings instructed. "After all, you have did some volunteering with the Ottawa Police, have you not?"

"Yes, sir." Bennett nodded. "I'll get to the bottom of this."

"Excellent." Jennings said. "Let me know if you've found something."

END OF FLASHBACK

"So I've assembled a small team to dig into the numbers." Bennett said. "Then-Sergeants Merkley and Crane joined in."

"I even remember what was Derek's first reaction when we asked him about the assignment." Merkley added. "First thing he did was that he went to his stuff and returned with a magnifying glass and wearing a deerstalker in the place of his wedge."

"Anyways, our little investigation led us to find that someone in the squadron has been embezzling funds raised for the Legion." Bennett said. "Someone in the sponsoring committee, as a matter a fact."

"Our investigation soon led us to zero in on Mr. Paul, who everyone noticed to be spending more than he earned at work." Merkley said. "And then we made our move after Derek and then-Flight Lieutenant Jennings found something that confirmed our suspicions."

"We sure crashed that sponsoring committee meeting that day, and I'll never forget what then-Sergeant Crane did when Mr. Paul was exposed." Jennings added.

FLASHBACK - Fifteen Years Ago

_November 22, 1955_

"There's nowhere to go, Mr. Paul." Jennings spoke. "We've got evidence of you embezzling funds raised for the Legion, and the police will soon be here."

"Not if you catch me first!" Mr. Paul said defiantly before suddenly shoving Bennett out of the way and took off running.

Seeing Mr. Paul running, Jennings, Bennett and Merkley quickly ran after him.

Crane, who was returning from the washroom, happened to be walking nearby when he heard Jennings shouted, "Stop him!"

Seeing the running Paul, Crane looked around and saw an empty rubbish bin. Recalling something, he picked up the rubbish bin and walked in a certain direction.

Eventually, Mr. Paul reached his parked car outside the barracks. Looking around, he saw no one around and headed for his car.

However, just as he was about to unlock the car door and get in, Crane suddenly jumped him and placed the rubbish bin over his head before pushing him to the ground.

As Mr. Paul tried to get out, Crane took out a pencil and started poking the man, causing Mr. Paul to yelp in pain.

Crane then saw Jennings and the others looking around, and he dropped what he was doing and raced over to flag them down.

When they rushed over, they found Mr. Paul running away with the rubbish bin still over his head.

However, his freedom was short-lived, as a couple of nearby patrolling Service Police officers heard the quartet's calls for Mr. Paul to be stopped and rushed over to stop him.

"That's him alright." Jennings said to the two SPs. "Mr. Ronald Paul has been embezzling funds raised for the Legion."

Crane then held up his right hand, gesturing them "Not yet" before pulling out his pencil.

"Just to make sure." Crane said as he held up his pencil.

Then, as Jennings, Bennett, Merkley and the two SPs looked on, Crane proceeded to poke Mr. Paul with the pencil.

Identifying Mr. Paul's yelps in pain as he poked him with the pencil, Crane turned to Jennings and nodded.

"It's him alright." He said.

END OF FLASHBACK

"Wow, sounds like Flight Lieutenant Crane has a unique way of identifying culprits, sir." Garfield remarked after the four officers related the story.

"Yes, he sure has." Jennings nodded. "After the arrest, Mr. Paul's residence was raided and he was found to have been evading taxes for years and as a result, he was sentenced to fifteen years in prison."

"Then, it seems like he was seeking revenge on the wing for his imprisonment, sir." Leclerc said.

"And I have no doubt that he and his accomplices were seeking for the valuable cargo that was said to be buried here." Slorach said.

"However, how does he know about the valuable cargo that was said to be buried here in Uplands?" Ogden asked.

"The key will be that someone who survived that plane crash back in 1944 was involved in this scheme." Jennings said as they eyed the two remaining unmasked phantoms. "Or in this case, faked the plane crash after stealing the plane, which was running low on fuel at that time."

"Is that true, Mr. Bob Goldwater?" A SP corporal asked as they yanked the two remaining masks off, revealing one of them to be a wanted fugitive.

"Bob Goldwater." Jennings said as he recognized the face. "Now that's someone I do recall having a reputation as a troublemaker back in pilot training at Rockcliffe, as well as being one of those three that got disqualified from pilot training that day."

"In addition to Mr. Ed Levant here, who was expelled from pilot training for his constantly picking fights with cadets of different ethnicities." The SP flight sergeant added as the third phantom was unmasked.

"These three have all taken part in pilot training in Rockcliffe during the war." Jennings said. "And they were disqualified and expelled from pilot training that day for causing trouble after that bar fight."

"It's my hunch that these three men got together when they were to be sent home and hijacked that cargo plane." Garfield said.

"Then, when they took off, they realized too late that the plane was running low on fuel." Bruun said. "With the military search planes hot on their trail, they staged the plane crash here and then buried the missing valuables before splitting up, but not before making an accord with each other where they will return someday when the coast is clear and dig up the stolen cargo."

"Except that they didn't count on the establishment of the new Uplands air cadet squadron in the 1960s while they were hiding out." Merkley interjected. "By this point, Mr. Paul was in prison for embezzlement and tax evasion while Mr. Levant and Mr. Goldwater were hiding elsewhere and living under assumed names."

"Living under assumed names, yes." A second SP corporal said. "But apparently they've been running scams and fraud rackets during their times waiting for Mr. Paul to get out of prison."

"Anyways, when Mr. Paul finally got released, they decided to go dig the cargo out, only to find that the Uplands squadron has been established with the barracks built above where the cargo was buried." Garfield said.

"So using the legend of the Phantom Cadet, they grabbed the officers and seniors in the two squadrons and try to scare away the others while they search the area for the buried cargo." Leclerc said. "Now, with Mr. Paul's ability to disguise himself as Flight Lieutenant Crane, they can enter the cadet training base undetected and familiarize themselves with the layout so they can carry out with their search."

"Not to mention that they can seek their revenge on the wing, particularly Flight Lieutenants Crane and Merkley, for their part in getting Mr. Paul busted." Jennings said. "I won't be surprised if they chose this particular night to strike because of my visit."

"No doubt about it, sir." Turner remarked.

"And once they're search was completed, they were then planning on getting out of the country, which explained the three one-way Penn Central train tickets to New York from Union Station they've hidden in the file cabinet in the Level 3 cadet barrack." Slorach said.

"Quite the elaborate plan if you ask me." Sanders remarked.

"Yes, and we would've gotten away with it, if it weren't for these meddling cadet warrant officers and flight sergeants!" Mr. Paul spat angrily as he and his accomplices were escorted away by the Service Police.

At the remark, Garfield suppressed an urge to chuckle. It reminded him of the little adventure he and a few new friends from the States went through this past summer at the Ottawa SuperEX.

**(Note: For more information on that little adventure at the Ottawa SuperEX, please check my FanFiction story _D4 Scooby-Doo! A Haunting at the Ottawa SuperEX!_ )**

* * *

_October 23, 1970_

The next day, Garfield was smiling at himself as he went through the usual classes at school.

Not long after solving the mystery, Air Vice-Marshal Jennings praised him for his bravery in getting things done and clearing up the mystery and recommended him for a medal.

"All in a night's work." He thought to himself during lunch period.

Eventually, he was on his way back to his locker, where he paused at the grandfather clock at the main entrance.

The sight of the grandfather clock reminded him of his very first adventure two years ago, where he helped solve a string of thefts at school and helped unearth the secret of the last will of Bruce Stevenson in the process.

He then proceeded to take out his handkerchief out and wipe the top of the grandfather clock. It was part of his ritual every time he stopped by to look at the clock to ensure dust wasn't accumulated on it.

He then huffed at the glass cover of the clock before wiping it with his handkerchief.

"There." He remarked as the glass cover looked noticeably shinier.

He then pocketed his handkerchief before making his way to the middle stairwell.

The scene eventually shifted to the back of the grandfather clock, where the name of the clockmaker is revealed.

Garfield & Stephenson Clocks Ltd., 1895.

* * *

**The adventures of Garfield Stephenson Wu continues in _D4 The Final Calculus Problem!_**

**Please read and review!**


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